With the battle between Naruto and Sasuke concluded, and their confrontation with the Sage of Six Paths underway, the battlefield in the Land of Lightning had erupted into the true prelude of the Fourth Great Ninja War!
Crack!
A long-range Kamui tore through the defense of a Truth-Seeking Orb!
Indra withdrew rapidly, muttering, "So that's it. That ocular jutsu called Kamui—the right eye lets attacks phase through your body, and the left can bypass even Truth-Seeking Orbs' defense."
"Beyond that, you possess Yomotsu Hirasaka to manipulate time, and a defensive eye technique, Amenominakanushi, that grants immunity to all genjutsu. All these powers—though merely Mangekyō-level—rival the performance of the Rinnegan!"
"And with Impure World Reincarnation, your chakra never actually runs out, amplifying your ocular abilities to the extreme. Hahaha... What surprises me most is that, with all these godlike powers, you're not even my current era's reincarnation!"
Thud, thud, thud!
While Indra marveled, Ashura drove his True Several Thousand Hands from a side peak, closing in on the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path as it approached its final transformation!
His thinking was simple: if he couldn't stop Indra, he could at least destroy the statue and shatter his brother's ambitions!
"Hmph, always up to your sneaky little tricks!"
Indra snorted, his left eye locking onto the True Several Thousand Hands.
—Mokahana Chiru!
Whoosh!
The life force of the True Several Thousand Hands was drained dry by Mokahana Chiru, turning the giant into rotting wood that collapsed before the statue...
Ashura plummeted from the sky, shouting, "Brother, please stop this madness!"
Indra's left eye narrowed again. "You shut up already..."
—Mohagabetsurai!
Crack!
Lightning erupted from beneath Ashura's feet, swallowing him whole!
Withdrawing his gaze, Indra turned to Black Zetsu. "Kuroko, go keep Ashura busy. I need to finish off that Obito guy!"
Black Zetsu: "Fine, but I'm not called Kuroko..."
Indra: "Just go!"
As the lightning faded, Black Zetsu appeared behind Ashura, his pitch-black arms snaking beneath Ashura's armpits to lock him tight!
"Hahaha, Ashura, my mischievous nephew, can't you behave for a second?"
Ashura snapped, "Kuroko, let me go!!!"
"You're the Kuroko! Your whole clan are Kurokos!!!"
Black Zetsu shot back, tightening his grip even further.
Off in the distance, Obito and Minato stood side by side.
Obito: "Sensei, please take Ashura back to the village when you can!"
Minato: "Why not come with us? Shinobi from every village are already gathering at the Hidden Rain Village!"
Obito: "How long has it been since the call to assemble?"
Minato: "About half a day, I think."
Obito: "Then you know most are still on the road. If no one holds Indra back and he casts Infinite Tsukuyomi now, all those shinobi will be caught mid-journey—and Naruto's plan will fall apart. I have to stay and buy them time!"
Minato: "I understand, but Naruto is at the Valley of the End, settling things with Sasuke, so..."
Obito: "You mean to say, politely, that it's unrealistic for me alone to stop Indra..."
Minato: "I just don't want anything to happen to you."
Whoosh!
At that moment, Indra charged straight at them!
Obito's left eye spun.
—Kamui!
Indra anticipated the move, arranging his Truth-Seeking Orbs into a dynamic defense!
Crack! Crack!
Fragments of Truth-Seeking Orbs shattered and fell away!
Using the orbs as cover, Indra closed in, terrifying power gathering in his left palm, forming a semi-transparent, vibrating blade!
Ashura shouted in alarm, "That's the Great Soul Shock Sword—it can directly strike the soul! Obito, stay intangible, no matter what! If it hits your real body, you're dead!!!!"
Charging, Indra muttered, "Ashura, you sure talk a lot~. His ability is flawless, but every human has a weakness!"
Whoosh! Indra lunged at Minato!
Obito's face tightened. "Sensei, get out of here!!"
Minato prepared to use Flying Thunder God to escape, but suddenly, a wave of dread seized his mind. In his spirit, a dark purple chakra formed a monstrous hand that seized his soul!
Minato shuddered. "Genjutsu...? But I never made eye contact with Indra—how?!"
Indra's gaze was cold. "You didn't look at me just now. But when you pretended to surrender and approached, I planted the genjutsu then—just set it for delayed activation..."
Minato struggled. "Ugh, this is just a basic Binding Genjutsu, yet it affects me so deeply even in Impure World Reincarnation... What terrifying ocular power!"
Drawing closer, Indra raised the Great Soul Shock Sword and stabbed at Minato!!
"This is bad—I have to get sensei out of here!!"
Just as Obito had the thought, Indra'sTruth-Seeking Orbs flew up, blocking him from Minato!
Uchiha Obito gritted his teeth and used Kamui to appear right in front of Minato!!!
Indra smirked. "Just as I thought—caring about this man is your weakness!!!"
Slash!
The Great Soul Shock Sword pierced straight through Obito's chest!
Buzz! The blade dissolved with a hum, leaving a gaping wound in his soul!
From the depths of his very being, agony wracked Obito, tearing a scream from his lips: "Aaaaghhhh—!!"
Indra sneered. "What now? Can't use your eyes anymore, can you? It's over..."
—Human Path!
Whoosh!
Indra grabbed the rift in Obito's soul and began to tear it out!
But Obito, enduring unimaginable pain, clamped down on Indra's arm with both hands!
Indra was surprised. "Still got the strength to struggle? Your willpower's something else!"
Seeing this, Ashura roared in fury. "Let him go...!"
Rip!
One of Black Zetsu's arms was torn clean off. "You bastard!!"
Freed from his restraints, Ashura charged recklessly forward!
Black Zetsu's severed hand transformed into a Truth-Seeking Orb in his grip. He landed between Indra and Obito, the orb morphing into a blade that sliced off Indra's entire left arm!
"Ugh...!"
Indra staggered back, face darkening!
Ashura pressed his hand to Minato's shoulder!
—Release!
Snap! Minato regained his senses and, in a flash of Flying Thunder God, vanished with Ashura and Obito!
Black Zetsu approached. "They got us."
"No matter. His soul's been shattered—he won't survive."
Indra looked at his missing left arm.
"Ashura used a Truth-Seeking Orb for soul-severing? That's actually one of his few decent moves. Well, no big deal..."
Rustle rustle rustle!
Indra drew on other parts of his soul to repair his left arm, then shrank his body to match the smaller soul.
His left arm was restored, but now Indra looked like a tall child, his whole form diminished.
"Rooooaaaaaaar...!"
The Demonic Statue of the Outer Path howled to the heavens. With a thunderous rumble, it finally completed its transformation!
Black Zetsu: "The Ten-Tails is finally reborn..."
.........
Hidden Rain Village, in an open square!
"Obito, hang in there!!"
Watching Obito's Impure World Reincarnation body crumble, his consciousness fading, Minato was frantic but helpless!
"His soul's taken a mortal blow... I'm afraid there's no saving him..."
Ashura stared at the Truth-Seeking Orb that now contained the soul of Indra's severed arm.
"This alone isn't enough..."
Slash!
Ashura used the orb-blade to sever his own right arm!
Then—he sealed both his right arm's soul and Indra's fragment inside the Truth-Seeking Orb!
With one hand, Ashura formed a seal.
Whoosh!
The Truth-Seeking Orb turned pure white!
Ashura gripped the white orb in his left hand, reaching toward Obito's chest!
Minato: "What are you doing?"
Ashura: "I'm using pieces of both my and my brother's souls to repair Obito's shattered spirit. It's the only way to save him, but there's a risk of soul backlash. If his will is strong enough, he might survive—and even gain new power. In the end, everything depends on his fate...!"
~~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~~
Read up to (20+ ) advanced chapters on Patre\on
Visit us here: patreon.com/DarkGolds
Happy reading, everyone!